1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the working of wood and other materials, specifically to powered coping apparatus and tools, such as bandsaws, jigsaws, and scrollsaws used in the cutting of shapes into materials. Additionally, this invention relates to powered profile sanders, used in the sanding of profiled materials.
2. Description of Prior Art
The utilization of various types of power saws to shape-cut materials has been in common practice since the advent of the industrial revolution. More recently, power tools have been utilized to perform the difficult task of cutting shapes in materials, defined as "coping". Additionally, power tools recently have been utilized to perform the difficult task of sanding intricate shapes which already have been cut into materials. However, due to the need for multiple tools and multiple shape setups, as well as a required high skill level to operate the tools, only a small number of artisans can accomplish these tasks. Moreover, present technology has certain inherent limitations, such as an inability to effectively cut and sand shapes into the side, top, bottom, and end of materials, and the necessity of separate tools and tool setups to saw and then sand intricate shapes into the material. Additionally, present technology requires two separate setups to create shapes and their corresponding negative shapes.
For example: the saw shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,136,904 to Peters, Aug. 11, 1992, which is a reciprocating saw blade within a pivotable frame, has the following limitations.
(a) It is difficult to cut shapes into the sides, top, and bottom of materials. PA1 (b) Advanced skill is required to operate this saw. PA1 (c) The user is unable to adjust the shape of the cutting blades to any shape in a minimal amount of time, and is unable to make identical multiple cuts. PA1 (d) It is difficult to cut shapes into materials at both simple and compound angles. PA1 (e) A rough saw-marked texture remains on the material after sawing. PA1 (f) It is difficult to manipulate or angularly clamp long or heavy materials around stationary machinery. PA1 (g) Two separate setups are required for the original shape and the negative of the original shape. PA1 (h) Only a small number of types of materials can be cut by this tool. PA1 (i) Profile cuts cannot be done in a precise manner. PA1 (j) Awkward blade manipulations are required to perform cuts in materials. PA1 (k) There are only a limited number of standard profile sanding shapes available to be attached to the sanders. PA1 (l) These separate sand-alone sanding tools require the artisan to use two separate tools, requiring two separate setups for the sanding and cutting operations. PA1 (m) These tools cannot be adjusted to cut non-standard profile shapes and cannot be adjusted to create simultaneously both a custom profile and the negative of that profile. PA1 (a) easily cuts and sands shapes into the sides, top, bottom, or ends of materials, PA1 (b) requires minimal skills to operate, PA1 (c) can be quickly adjusted to create custom cutting and sanding profile shapes, PA1 (d) easily and accurately cuts shapes into materials at both simple and compound angles, PA1 (e) leaves a smoothly sanded surface after cutting material into a desired shape, PA1 (f) allows the material being cut and sanded to be clamped immovably on a horizontal surface for the cutting and sanding operation, PA1 (g) cuts and sands both the original shape and the negative of the original shape with only one setup operation, PA1 (h) is able to cut and sand a broad spectrum of materials, PA1 (i) provides repetitive high-tolerance shape cutting and sanding, PA1 (j) achieves the cutting and sanding of complex shapes with a simple straight-line blade manipulation, PA1 (k) adjusts the shape of the sanding profile simultaneously with the adjustment of the cutting profile, retaining these shapes for identical repetitive cutting and sanding operations, PA1 (l) requires low skill level to form the custom profile sanding shape with zero margin of error between the cutting profile shape and the sanding profile shape, PA1 (m) in one setup operation provides the cutting and sanding profile of both the profile and the negative of the profile,
With the exception of items b, f, and j from the above-list, the saw in U.S. Pat. No. 5,363,732 to Heasley, Nov. 15, 1994 has the same limitations as the saw in the Peters patent. This apparatus includes a circular saw that is mounted on two sliding bases. Besides the circular saw there is a support for a stylus used to control the positioning of the saw blade by traversing a profile template.
The commonly used bandsaw and scrollsaw have the same limitations as those in the Peters patent, except for item j.
The commonly used jigsaw has the same limitations as those in the Peters patent, except for items a and f.
A profile sanding apparatus is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,426,028 to Krueger, Aug. 19, 1947 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,066 to Bosten et al., Sep. 10, 1996. These apparatus utilize a profiled sanding pad coupled to a mechanism to provide motion to the sanding pad. These apparatus are limited by the following factors: